Thai Prime Minister dismissed by court

Photo: Chanakarn Laosarakham Agence France-Presse Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin was accused by senators of violating ethical rules by appointing Pichit Chuenban, a lawyer convicted in 2008 in a corruption case, as minister.

Thanaporn Promyamyai – Agence France-Presse and Montira Rungjirajittranon – Agence France-Presse in Bangkok

Published at 9:22

• Asia

Thai courts on Wednesday dismissed Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, who was accused of appointing a minister convicted of corruption, leading the country into a new cycle of instability.

The judges voted 5-4 to “terminate” Mr. Srettha's tenure, said Judge Punya Udchachon, reading the decision.

The leader's departure, less than a year after his appointment, plunges the kingdom into uncertainty, with no clear succession, a context of economic stagnation and concerns about the state of democracy.

“I respect the decision. “I repeat that during my almost one year in office, I have done my best to lead the country honestly,” Srettha Thavisin said from the government headquarters in Bangkok.

“I am sad to be considered a dishonest prime minister,” he added.

Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai is taking over as interim prime minister, pending a vote in the National Assembly, which could come as early as Friday.

Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy has a long history of instability and military or judicial intervention in the political system, in the name of a status quo that favors the military-royalist bloc, according to the pro-democracy camp.

Last week, the Constitutional Court dissolved the main opposition party and banned its pro-democracy leader Pita Limjaroenrat for 10 years, a decision contested by the United Nations and human rights groups.

“True mess »

“Thai politics is a mess. Thailand is going to suffer a loss of confidence from foreign investors,” Puangthong Pawakapan, a professor at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, told AFP.

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Srettha Thavisin was accused by 40 pro-army senators of breaking ethical rules set out in the Constitution by appointing Pichit Chuenban, a lawyer sentenced in 2008 to six months in prison in a corruption case, as a minister.

The affair evokes the divisions of the 2000s and 2010s between billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra, whose MM. Srettha and Pichit are close, and conservative elites are aligned with the king and the military.

A year ago, the two sides put aside old grudges to form a coalition that propelled Mr. Srettha, from the Pheu Thai party controlled by the Shinawatra family, to power.

The National Assembly must now vote on a new prime minister.

Observers expect the current coalition to remain united, but there is no consensus on a name for the position yet.

The Pheu Thai party, which has the largest number of MPs in the ruling coalition, could nominate Thaksin Shinawatra’s daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who has been repeatedly tipped to take the post one day.

Coalition meeting Thursday

The outgoing government’s interior minister and leader of the coalition’s second-largest party, Anutin Charnvirakul, is also tipped to run for the post. function.

A meeting is planned for Thursday morning between the different components in power, Wisut Chainarun, Pheu Thai MP and “whip” in charge of discipline within the coalition, told AFP. “We hope to vote as soon as possible, hopefully by Friday,” he said.

A property developer who entered politics last year, Mr Srettha has pledged to support same-sex marriage, which was passed in June after years of fighting by the LGBT+ community.

But a majority of Thais rejected his policies, according to a poll published in June.

His plans to recriminalise cannabis and provide 10,000 baht (nearly CA$400) to more than 40 million Thais have caused a stir in the country and within his coalition.

A majority of voters cast ballots in 2023 for the progressives of Move Forward (MFP), who proposed to turn the page on twenty years of politics in Thailand dominated by the Shinawatra clan and the generals.

The party's program included a reform of the lèse-majesté law, a new Constitution, a reduction in the army budget, and the end of certain economic monopolies.

Accused of wanting to destabilize the monarchy, the MFP was dissolved last week, but its members announced the creation of the People's Party in the wake of this, with the aim of gaining power in the next national election.